Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense
The Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense (the B.P.R.D. or BPRD) is an organization charged with protecting America and the world from the occult, paranormal and supernatural. It maintains the services of several supernatural persons, including Hellboy. The BPRD originally appeared in the Hellboy comics but has also been featured in many stories under the BPRD title. Bureau history The BPRD was founded in late 1944 by Professor Trevor Bruttenholm to combat various occult threats uncovered in operations against Nazi Germany. It initially had strong links to the United States Army Air Forces and was based at a military airbase in New Mexico, but later relocated to a custom built facility in Fairfield, Connecticut. It maintains strong links to various branches of the United States Armed Forces to this day. It is a private organization that receives funding from several major governments (mostly the United States and United Kingdom, although other countries like Canada, Japan, France, and Italy have been mentioned). Professor Bruttenholm served as director until the late 1950s when he stepped down to return to field work. The current Director is Dr. Thomas Manning. Since the 1970's, additional paranormal agents have joined the ranks, such as Liz Sherman, Johann Kraus, and Ben Daimio. This has become necessary to maintain the high profile of the Bureau, especially in light of the departure of their flagship agent, Hellboy, in 2001. In spite of being a member of the team, Hellboy only makes an appearance in one B.P.R.D. title, The Universal Machine #4. The BPRD is a well known and respected organization that has excellent relations with most international governments and United States government agencies, with the exceptions of China and the CIA. The Bureau was the United States' only defense against an onslaught of frog creatures (originally featured in ''Seed of Destruction''). Though the 'frogs' originally began operating on the East Coast, they spread west on both sides of the US-Canadian border. To cut costs, the Bureau moved from its traditional headquarters in Connecticut to an abandoned research facility in Colorado. This facility was last used to house Nazi scientists who defected to America after World War II. As such, the facility contains vast amounts of secret files that the BPRD has yet to explore. The frog monster invasion reached its peak during the events of The Black Flame. A Nazi madman called the Black Flame insinuated himself as the leader of the frogs, and together they raised Katha-Hem (one of the Ogdru Hem, the 369 spawn of the Ogdru Jahad) from the ground. The mountainous beast ran rampant across the American heartland until Liz Sherman used an ancient artifact to amplify her pyrokinetic powers a thousandfold. After she burned Katha-Hem alive, the frog monsters dragged the Black Flame into a vast pit and the invasion came to an end. Agents 'Enhanced talents' agents * Hellboy, Beast of the Apocalypse (left Bureau) * Abe Sapien, amphibious man * Liz Sherman, pyrokinetic * Roger the Homunculus, homunculus (deceased, in-so-much as a homunculus can be deceased in the human sense) * Johann Kraus, ectoplasmic physical medium * Captain Ben Daimio, team leader (were-jaguar, technically deceased) * Sidney Leach, psychically detects and manipulates metal (possibly retired) * Panya, ageless mummy * Lobster Johnson, ghost (technically deceased) Human agents * Dr. Tom Manning, director * Dr. Kate Corrigan, liaison to enhanced talents agents * Professor Trevor Bruttenholm, former director (deceased) * Dr. O'Donnell, occult specialist * Mr. Bud Waller, field agent/mechanic (deceased) - Wake The Devil * Agent Clark, field agent (deceased) - Wake The Devil * Pauline Raskin, Field Agent (possibly psychic) , Liz Sherman, Abe Sapien, Roger, Kate Corrigan.]] * FBI Special Agent John Myers, Hellboy liaison (1st movie only) * Norton Ricker, U.S. Military * Mac, dog * Mr. Garrett Omatta, psychic * Mr. Wilson, pilot (turned into a frogman, presumed deceased) - Plague of Frogs * Mr. Jim, techie * Mr. Izzy Kemper, cult expert and linguist, possibly mind reader * Dr. Arnold Platt, scientist (deceased) * Possibly The Finn, a friend of Hellboy's * Dr. Roddel, scientist * Dr. Cobb, scientist * Dr. Hoffman, scientist or psychic * Mr. Lloyd, mechanic * Mr. Josh Ecton, psychic * Mr. Helton, field agent * Agent Hamilton (deceased) * Mr. Navarro, field agent * Mr. Swanson, field agent * Mr. Ferguson, field agent (deceased) * Mr. Musgrove, field agent (deceased) * Mr. Holcombe, field agent (deceased) * Agent Clay, field agent (deceased) * Agent Pratt, field agent (deceased) - The Drowning * Agent Hampton, field agent (deceased) - The Drowning * Agent Van Fleet, field agent (deceased) - The Drowning * Agent Salvatore, field agent * Agent Vaughn, field agent Publication History Mini-series have appeared under the B.P.R.D. banner since 2002, with the publication of Hollow Earth #1-3. For a listing of individual stories and issues see the Story Publication Timeline, which contains all published stories. For a listing of Trade Paperbacks collecting B.P.R.D. stories see the B.P.R.D. section of the Trade Paperback page. sv:Byrån för Paranormal Forskning och Försvar